This invention relates to carrying cases for emergency medical supplies and more particularly to modular carrying cases, designed to be highly visible and easily accessible.
Critical emergency care is based on the principle of being able to perform life-saving or morbidity reducing procedures with little or no delay. For the critically-ill or severely injured victim, the difference between life and death often depends upon immediate access to emergency medical treatment.
Presently emergency supplies and equipment are organized in bags with pockets or pouches or in tackle-like boxes. They are organized to be conveniently stored, but not conveniently and procedurally accessed. This becomes a great challenge to the care giver when a emergency situation requires the need to search through contents hidden in pouches, pockets or drawers. All too frequently this search proves fruitless as the item was presumed to be in a storage pouch, pocket, or drawer, but was missed in the hurry to re-stock. It can be very difficult, time demanding and inefficient to open and close each storage section and to attempt to remember its contents.
The difficulty is further amplified by situations in which different emergency personnel are present at a scene. Personnel may be unfamiliar with the contents and arrangement of the kit of a different level of care provider (i.e. advanced versus basic life support). Because the contents are either hidden or difficult to see, personnel who are not familiar with a particular kit may have difficulty in locating the medical supplies needed for treating a particular injury. Common emergency equipment is often stored in different locations and standardization is difficult to achieve. Further time delays, complicated by an increase in frustration and misunderstanding among care providers, can add to making a bad situation worse.
Another problem often encountered while treating victims at the scene of an accident is the difficulty in treating more than one patient at a time. Although more than one trained person may be present, there is often only one kit containing emergency medical supplies available. If all the medical supplies are kept within one bag, box or pack and cannot be conveniently and effectively removed for use at another location, the entire kit must be transferred around from patient to patient, creating a highly ineffective care situation.
Furthermore, when attempting to function in an unfamiliar or threatening environment as is encountered in mass casualty, disaster or military settings, it is vital that personnel know the exact location and availability of supplies and be able to accurately monitor and manage the level and volume of resources required. Critical time is lost in attempting to locate, restock and ensure a constant flow of needed supplies. Current kits are unable to be upscaled to deal with mass casualty situations.
Current kits also require complete reworking to be functional as kits for different levels of care, or to function at special event, disaster or hospital medical stations. As well, they are not always particularly suited for adaptation to transport vehicles, air, land or sea.
It would, therefore, be a significant advancement in the provision of care if a system could be designed which would be readily adaptable to a variety of work environments, personnel and situations and which would logically organize necessary equipment and supplies in such a manner that would allow them to be readily visible and immediately accessible.
The present invention can be understood as a medical supply storage system, incorporating functional modular storage units into an array of advanced modular portable bags, packs, display board panels and vests.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a carrying system for medical supplies that is an improvement over the prior art.
According to one aspect of the present invention, the present invention relates to a device for the storage and handling of equipment and/or supplies, including at least one panel provided with means for securement of such equipment or supplies to said panel, and means integral with said panel for facilitating access to said equipment or supplies.
In another broad aspect, the present invention relates to a carrying and display case for retaining supplies, said case comprising at least one modular unit and a plurality of panels, said panels having an interior and an exterior surface wherein at least one panel is adapted for supporting the modular unit.
In a further broad aspect, the present invention relates to a case for carrying and displaying medical supplies comprising: a plurality of rigid panel means releasably connected together for forming a body and defining an exterior surface and an interior space therein; a plurality of unit carrying means for holding and retaining medical supplies; said unit carrying means having an exterior surface with a first attachment means and said exterior surface of said panels having a second attachment means wherein when said first attachment means engages said second attachment means the unit carrying means is supported on said panels.
The present invention has several advantages. It provides visible, immediate access to equipment and supplies, therefore, improving efficiency in the provision of care. Its modular structure is designed such that the system is readily adapted to use in air, land or water transport. The modular design is versatile in that it enables customization of the modules on the display units, bags, packs or vests according to requirements or individual preferences, while still ensuring standardization. Providers require minimal time to familiarize themselves with where items are located. The use of ready duplicate modules significantly diminishes delays in multiple or mass casualties or when modules are required for urgent transport. The use of fastening devices on the modules, display boards and portable bags to which they can be attached, along with the highly visible, easy accessible modular design of the entire system, allows the individual care provider to tailor the system to their needs by choosing and arranging modules in a variety of storage and display options.
Numerous other advantages, objects and features of the present invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from a review of the following detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and claims.